In most situations, motor vehicles having steerable wheels support wheel axles on swivel members which are retained between upper and lower control arms (also known as A-arms or wishbones). The upper and lower control arms have front and rear legs that are pivotally mounted on the body or frame rails of the vehicle. Disposed between the lower control arms and body or frame of the vehicles are shock absorbers that include springs and dampers.
Steerable wheels of automotive vehicles require adjustment in camber and caster in order to maintain proper alignment. Camber is the amount that wheels are closer to one another at the bottom than at the top and caster is the slight backward tilt of wheels.
According to current practice, camber and caster are adjusted by alignment cams which are integral with couplings that attach the control arms to a vehicle's body or frame. Deletion of these alignment cams could reduce weight, space consumption and expense. Since there is a continuing need to make automotive components less massive, costly and intrusive, elimination of these integral alignment cams may be desirable.